Friday, July 11, 2008

If you are looking for some fun wedding inspiration, how about a movie? Suite101.com wrote an article on the Top Ten Wedding Movies: Romantic Comedies That Make You Feel Good About Love and Marriage.

The list is:

10. Runaway Bride. Julia Roberts stars in this romantic comedy. Her character is so afraid of commitment, she keeps leaving her grooms at the altar. Costar Richard Gere plays the man who finally marries her. In real life, Julia Roberts is now married to cameraman Daniel Moder. Her previous marriage was to Lyle Lovett; director Garry Marshall gave her away during that wedding.

9. The Marrying Man. Neil Simon wrote this screenplay, and Alec Baldwin starred as the man who married the same woman four times. Kim Basinger plays a sultry lounge singer who is a mobster’s girlfriend, which prevents her from marrying the man she really loves. In real life, Alec and Kim fell in love on the set of this movie and married, but later divorced in 2002.

8. The Wedding Singer. Adam Sandler stars in this movie about a wedding singer who was jilted at the altar, and who becomes the worst wedding singer. Drew Barrymore is Sandler’s costar. In real life, Barrymore married bartender Jerry Thomas when she was 19. She later married Canadian Tom Green. This is an edgy addition to the top 10 wedding movies.

7. The Wedding Planner. Jennifer Lopez plays a wedding planner who falls in love with the fiancé of her client. Matthew McConaughey costars in this romantic comedy. In real life, Lopez was married twice before she married Ben Affleck. McConaughey has never married.

6. Muriel’s Wedding. Australian Toni Collette stars in this Cinderella story about a dream come true. It’s not really a romantic comedy because it deals with suicide, cancer, and following your heart. Even though it doesn’t feature huge movie stars, it is definitely one of the sweetest, most touching of the top 10 wedding movies.

5. Father of the Bride. Steve Martin and Diane Keaton star in this romantic comedy, which is a remake of the original Father of the Bride staring Spencer Tracy. Martin Short is the wedding planner in the movie, and he steals the show. Kimberly Williams played the bride-to-be in Father of the Bride. This is a wedding movie that focuses more on the parents of the bride than the bride herself.

4. My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Based on the real life experiences of Nia Vardalos, a Greek Winnipeg-based actress, this romantic comedy was originally a one-woman play. Tom Hanks’ wife Rita convinced Hanks to make the movie; he had to convince Vardalos to put more kissing and make out scenes in the movie. It’s definitely one of the funniest, most culturally interested of these top 10 wedding movies.

3. My Best Friend’s Wedding. Another Julia Roberts movie, she costarred with Cameron Diaz and Dermot Mulroney. Roberts is determined to put a stop to her best friend’s wedding (Mulroney is marrying Diaz in the movie). In an interview about this movie, Roberts said a wedding should be “a party to say we all believe in this love.” Director P.J. Hogan said this movie has a Shakespearian feel.

2. The Graduate. The oldest movie in this list of the top 10 wedding movies, The graduate is based one of the most famous affairs in film history. Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman star in this movie, which was Hoffman’s third film. He made it when he was a struggling actor. A classic scene was when Hoffman’s character stopped Bancroft’s daughter’s wedding – a scene that has been spoofed in Wayne’s World and The Simpsons.

1. Four Weddings and a Funeral. Starring Hugh Grant and Andie Macdowell, this is one of the highest grossing British romantic comedies in their history. Four Weddings made Hugh Grant a star overnight. Andie Macdowell stepped into the role just two weeks before filming, after original actress dropped out. Four Weddings is one of Julia Roberts’ favorite movies. This is number 1 of the top 10 wedding movies.

In my honorable mention catagory I would have to say: 27 Dresses, Sweet Home Alabama and 13 Going on 30.

I would love to hear some of your favorites, whether on the list or not...send me a comment and we can make our own list of favorites.